Brookstone Capital Management Lowers Stock Position in Blackstone Inc. $BX

Brookstone Capital Management decreased its position in Blackstone Inc. (NYSE:BX) by 81.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,960 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 30,878 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management’s holdings in Blackstone were worth $800,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Jain Global LLC acquired a new position in shares of Blackstone during the third quarter valued at approximately $9,116,000. Fayez Sarofim & Co raised its position in shares of Blackstone by 1.9% in the third quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co now owns 1,270,608 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $217,083,000 after buying an additional 24,237 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its position in Blackstone by 20.4% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 840,401 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $143,582,000 after acquiring an additional 142,479 shares during the last quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd grew its stake in Blackstone by 16,035.1% during the 3rd quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,140,264 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $194,746,000 after acquiring an additional 1,133,197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in Blackstone by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 904,237 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $154,489,000 after purchasing an additional 18,339 shares in the last quarter. 70.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Blackstone news, Director Ruth Porat bought 355 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $123.04 per share, for a total transaction of $43,679.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 41,818 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,145,286.72. The trade was a 0.86% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Vikrant Sawhney sold 30,014 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.79, for a total transaction of $3,775,461.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 899,669 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $113,169,363.51. This trade represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders acquired 10,252,345 shares of company stock valued at $209,789,893. 1.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on BX. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Blackstone from $140.00 to $133.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Monday, June 8th. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Blackstone in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Rothschild & Co Redburn decreased their target price on shares of Blackstone from $134.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Blackstone from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Blackstone currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $150.86.

Blackstone Stock Up 1.3%

BX stock opened at $115.66 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $85.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.58, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Blackstone Inc. has a twelve month low of $101.73 and a twelve month high of $190.09. The company’s 50 day moving average is $120.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $129.22.

Blackstone (NYSE:BX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The asset manager reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.02. Blackstone had a net margin of 20.67% and a return on equity of 22.86%. The firm had revenue of $3.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.45 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.11 EPS. Blackstone’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Blackstone Inc. will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blackstone Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 4th were paid a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. Blackstone’s payout ratio is currently 118.67%.

About Blackstone

Blackstone Inc (NYSE: BX) is a global investment firm focused on alternative asset management. Founded in 1985 by Stephen A. Schwarzman and Peter G. Peterson and headquartered in New York City, the firm organizes and manages investment vehicles that acquire and operate businesses, real estate and credit investments, as well as provide hedge fund solutions and other alternative strategies for institutional and individual investors.

Blackstone’s business is organized around several principal investment platforms.